Ex-intelligence minister: Origin of over half of sanctions against Iran not external

The origin of over 50 percent of the sanctions imposed against Iran is not external, Iran's Former Intelligence Minister Heydar Moslehi said on February 1, Iran's IRNA News Agency reported on February 1.

"The sanctions imposed on Iran are not harsh, but we have made them harsh ourselves," Moslehi said.

The former minister went on to note that the current sanctions are nothing compared to the sanctions imposed on Iran during the eight years of war with Iraq.

Iran and the P5+1 reached a nuclear agreement on Nov. 24. Iran agreed to curb some of its nuclear activities for six months in return for sanctions relief. Both Iran and the P5+1 group agreed to implement the agreement starting from Jan. 20.

Under the agreement, six major powers agreed to give Iran access to $4.2 billion in revenues blocked overseas if it carries out the deal, which offers sanctions relief in exchange for steps to curb the Iranian nuclear program.

The U.S. and its Western allies suspect Iran of developing a nuclear weapon - something that Iran denies. The Islamic Republic has on numerous occasions stated that it does not seek to develop nuclear weapons, using nuclear energy for medical researches instead.